By Jane Sutton
MIAMI (Reuters) - A ray leaped onto a boat off the FloridaKeys on Thursday and knocked a woman to the deck, killing her,wildlife investigators said.
"It's a bizarre accident," said Jorge Pino, an officer withthe Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The woman and her family were aboard a boat in the AtlanticOcean, off the city of Marathon in the Florida Keys, he said.
"A large ray jumped out of the water and collided with thevictim," Pino said.
The impact threw the woman backward and she hit her head onthe vessel, he said. Investigators initially said one of theanimal's venomous barbs had stabbed her, but they later saidthere was no sign of a puncture.
An autopsy was pending.
"We believe she died as a result of the impact betweenherself and the spotted eagle ray," said Gabriella Ferraro, aspokeswoman for the wildlife commission.
The ray weighed about 80 pounds (36 kg) and had a wingspanof 5 to 6 feet (1.5 to 1.8 metres), Ferraro said. The boat wastravelling at about 25 mph (40 kph) when the animal collidedwith the woman, killing both, she said.
Investigators identified the woman as Judy Kay Zagorski,57, of Pigeon, Michigan.
Spotted eagle rays are common in warm or tropical watersand are often seen near coral reefs. The can grow to more than8 feet (2.5 metres) across and have two to six short, venomousbarbs near the base of their whip-like tails, according to theFlorida Museum of Natural History's Web site.
The rays often swim near the water's surface and can leapout, especially when pursued, but are generally shy of humans.
"All rays leap out of the water from time to time butcertainly to see one collide with a vessel is extremelyunusual," Pino said.
In 2006, a spotted eagle ray leaped onto another boat inFlorida waters off the Fort Lauderdale area and pierced theheart of an 81-year-old man with its barb. He survived.
Steve Irwin, the host of the "Crocodile Hunter" televisionshow, was killed by another type of ray while filmingunderwater on Australia's Great Barrier Reef in 2006. He diedwhen a stingray's barb pierced his heart.
(Editing by Xavier Briand)
